In this episode, I take a look at the fascinating topic of technology in the allied health sector and its many benefits for both clinicians, practice owners and patients.
No one understands the importance of technology better than Katrina Otto, owner of Train IT Medical. The company provides medical practice management consultancy services. The company also provides medical software training, including Medical Director, PracSoft and Best Practice Specialist, as well as My Health Record and Digital Health training and change management expertise.
Katrina started the company in 2006 after seeing a gap in the market. Over her 30 year career, she has managed several medical practices and accredited day surgery facilities. She is a qualified teacher, and is now one of Australia’s most experienced digital health and medical software trainers.
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Episode highlights:
- What Train IT Medical does and why Katrina started the company
- Katrina’s female mentors
- Changing her psychology degree to adult education and teaching at TAFE part-time
- Being contacted by TAFE and asked to teach doctors and realising teaching IT medical was her calling
- Katrina still teaches mostly doctors but it’s shifted from ‘how-to use technology’ to ‘how do we improve our practice?’
- Introducing ideas to practices based on what she’s seen that works well at other practices
- Working with high-performing practices – those that are progressive and are leading the way
- Medical practices and allied health practices – are they one in the same?
- 23 different disciplines in allied health
- Katrina’s soft spot for occupational therapy
- The technological challenges facing the allied health industry – marketing and billing and a lack of options
- Katrina’s frustration at the lack of options – she wants technology to be more adaptable and faster because a lot of allied health businesses want that and are ready for it
- Ensuring patients don’t slip through the cracks – using technology to support your protocols
- Building your allied health business using data analytics
- The practice of the future – implementing TeleHealth, SMS contact and integrated technology
- How technology can help create happier medical practices
- Katrina’s hope to help prevent clinician burnout and keep joy in the profession and practices
- How Katrina thinks patients will be using technology to participate in their health experience going forward
- Katrina’s thoughts on what the future of allied health looks like – apps for patients will take off
- Electronic notes during a session – getting used to the change and embracing it
- Collaborating with the client on the next step in their health experience – encouraging record-keeping
- Finding what motivates each member of your allied health team – there isn’t a ‘one size fits all’
- The technology will come but allied health professionals need to shift their thinking to think as a team
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